Account operations & reports FAQs

Yes. Schwab Institutional is the institutional investment arms of Charles Schwab & Co. They act as a custodian of all our Clients' assets, which means they hold securities and cash and facilitate trading activities. Portfolio Solutions has selected Schwab Institutional as custodian because of their commitment to client service, low trading cost, and a dedication to operational efficiency. Our management fees are kept low because of the operational efficiency created by having only one custodian.

No. Portfolio Solutions is not affiliated with Charles Schwab Institutional or their parent company, nor are we compensated by that company in any way through fees, commission, or incentives. In the spirit of full disclosure, our firm is supplied necessary software that allows our in-house portfolio management system to work efficiently and cleanly with Schwab’s back-office operations and trading desks. This software is available to all investment advisors.

No. There is no reason to visit a Schwab office or to open Schwab accounts yourself. You will be signing Schwab Institutional paperwork that we will send to you. If there is a Schwab office nearby, you may go there to deposit checks rather than mailing money to Schwab. That would reduce the time it takes to put checks into your account.

Yes. Free Internet access is available to Clients through a special Schwab website 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. The website also is the source for immediate information on account activity and provides you with many reports including year-end tax information.

Charles Schwab sends monthly statements to all clients for all accounts. These statements show account balances, trades, cash flows, and unrealized gains. Statements are available in paper as well as through email. In addition, Portfolio Solutions will send a detailed performance report each quarter that compare your portfolio’s performance to a series of relevant market indexes.

At the end of each year, Charles Schwab will send 1099’s to each client that has a taxable account. In addition, a realized gain/loss statement is available on-line from Schwab, as well as Portfolio Solutions. We suggest that Clients use our realized gain and loss reports because we report sales by tax-lot, which is the most tax efficient accounting method.

No, either party can terminate the Agreement at any time and for any reason. There are no termination charges. A final invoice will be drafted based on the number of days during the current quarter that the account was under management.